The Depth & Breadth of GOP Victories

teapartysamurai

Gold Member
Mar 27, 2010
20,056
2,562
290
Let's try to put some metrics on last Tuesday's historic election. Two years ago, the popular vote for House of Representatives was 54 percent Democratic and 43 percent Republican. That may sound close, but in historic perspective it's a landslide. Democrats didn't win the House popular vote in the South, as they did from the 1870s up through 1992. But they won a larger percentage in the 36 non-Southern states than -- well, as far as I can tell, than ever before.

Republicans snatched control of about 20 legislative houses from Democrats -- and by margins that hardly any political insiders expected. Republicans needed five seats for a majority in the Pennsylvania House and won 15; they needed four seats in the Ohio House and got 13; they needed 13 in the Michigan House and got 20; they needed two in the Wisconsin Senate and four in the Wisconsin House, and gained four and 14; they needed five in the North Carolina Senate and nine in the North Carolina House and gained 11 and 15.

All those gains are hugely significant in redistricting. When the 2010 Census results are announced next month, the 435 House seats will be reapportioned to the states, and state officials will draw new district lines in each state. Nonpartisan commissions authorized by voters this year will do the job in (Democratic) California and (Republican) Florida, but in most states it's up to legislators and governors (although North Carolina's governor cannot veto redistricting bills).

When the tea party movement first made itself heard, Speaker Nancy Pelosi dismissed it as "Astroturf," a phony organization financed by a few millionaires. She may have been projecting -- those union demonstrators you see at Democratic events or heckling Republicans are often paid by the hour.

In any case, the depth and the breadth of Republican victories in state legislative races, even more than their gain of 60-plus seats in the U.S. House and six seats in the Senate, shows that the tea party movement was a genuine popular upheaval of vast dimensions. Particularly in traditional blue-collar areas, voters rejected longtime Democrats or abandoned lifelong partisan allegiances and elected Republicans.

This will make a difference not just in redistricting. State governments face budget crunches and are supposed to act to help roll out Obamacare. Republican legislatures can cut spending and block the rollout.

"I won," Barack Obama told Republican leaders seeking concessions last year. This year, he didn't.

RealClearPolitics - The Depth & Breadth of GOP Victories

Two years ago, that's what Obama said, "I won." Now, just like in 1994, and 2001, the Democrats talk "compromise" when they certainly don't talk compromise when they are in complete power.

Hopefully, the GOP have learned the lessons of '94 and 2001. If not, they will be thrown on the ash heap of history, with the others like the Whig party that thought "compromise" was the solution.
 
Let's try to put some metrics on last Tuesday's historic election. Two years ago, the popular vote for House of Representatives was 54 percent Democratic and 43 percent Republican. That may sound close, but in historic perspective it's a landslide. Democrats didn't win the House popular vote in the South, as they did from the 1870s up through 1992. But they won a larger percentage in the 36 non-Southern states than -- well, as far as I can tell, than ever before.

Republicans snatched control of about 20 legislative houses from Democrats -- and by margins that hardly any political insiders expected. Republicans needed five seats for a majority in the Pennsylvania House and won 15; they needed four seats in the Ohio House and got 13; they needed 13 in the Michigan House and got 20; they needed two in the Wisconsin Senate and four in the Wisconsin House, and gained four and 14; they needed five in the North Carolina Senate and nine in the North Carolina House and gained 11 and 15.

All those gains are hugely significant in redistricting. When the 2010 Census results are announced next month, the 435 House seats will be reapportioned to the states, and state officials will draw new district lines in each state. Nonpartisan commissions authorized by voters this year will do the job in (Democratic) California and (Republican) Florida, but in most states it's up to legislators and governors (although North Carolina's governor cannot veto redistricting bills).

When the tea party movement first made itself heard, Speaker Nancy Pelosi dismissed it as "Astroturf," a phony organization financed by a few millionaires. She may have been projecting -- those union demonstrators you see at Democratic events or heckling Republicans are often paid by the hour.

In any case, the depth and the breadth of Republican victories in state legislative races, even more than their gain of 60-plus seats in the U.S. House and six seats in the Senate, shows that the tea party movement was a genuine popular upheaval of vast dimensions. Particularly in traditional blue-collar areas, voters rejected longtime Democrats or abandoned lifelong partisan allegiances and elected Republicans.

This will make a difference not just in redistricting. State governments face budget crunches and are supposed to act to help roll out Obamacare. Republican legislatures can cut spending and block the rollout.

"I won," Barack Obama told Republican leaders seeking concessions last year. This year, he didn't.
RealClearPolitics - The Depth & Breadth of GOP Victories

Two years ago, that's what Obama said, "I won." Now, just like in 1994, and 2001, the Democrats talk "compromise" when they certainly don't talk compromise when they are in complete power.

Hopefully, the GOP have learned the lessons of '94 and 2001. If not, they will be thrown on the ash heap of history, with the others like the Whig party that thought "compromise" was the solution.
when_in_doubt_blame_bush_anti_obama_card-p137183350429279729q0yk_400.jpg


The Dem's have already started playing the Bush card. :lol:
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

And when the GOP accomplished NOTHING in the next two years...which they won't. Will they agains run extreme candidates?
 
Voters understand political reality. Something it seems the politicians in DC don't. The goal of the voters was to send a message that they don't like folks who talk one way and do another.

Right now the voters are happy with the concept of gridlock. That is what the voted for, that is what they are going to get.

The thing is, if the Democrats had been conciliatory back then, they could crow now. The disaster they face is because they broke the open government pledge.
 
I guess we will see.

Much can happen between now and 2012.

The Reps have the house and can put bills forward but the Dems have the Senate and the Prez still has the veto pen.

Wonder who will look better by 2012??
 
Dems need to takeaway the right lessons here. The Tea Party only hurt the Blue Dogs Dems, who were traitors anyway. The real hard core Leftist Democrats smashed the Tea Party. It wasn't even close in NY CA or DE where a bearded Marxist won. Med Whitman spent a fortune and the Tea Party was powerless against the Hard core Left in CA.

If Dems want to win back the people, I mean political power, they need to move Leftward.
 
Yea the Governorships and State Legislatures were huge Wins. The official Census numbers are now in so Redistricting will soon follow. Controlling many State Legislatures will be very important in this Redistricting. Either way,Red States are definitely on the rise while Blue States are definitely in decline. It really was a Historic Election Day for the Republican Party.
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

The GOP has a tight rope to walk. In races where the GOP ran a Tea Party loyalist who turned out to be a hardcore rightie, they lost. Miller isn't going to win in Alaska without some help from the lawyers, O'Donnell and Angle imploded, etc. However, the Tea Party did fuel victories in the House races all over the country.

So they need to find a way to skate between keeping the Tea Party, and not abandoning the Middle or they'll lose in 2012. If they lean too far right, they'll pretty much guarantee Obama a second term.
 
According to Census Numbers,Red States are rapidly rising while Blues States are rapidly declining. The future does look bright for the GOP. Not bad for a Party the Democrats deemed "Dead & Buried" only two years ago huh?
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

The GOP has a tight rope to walk. In races where the GOP ran a Tea Party loyalist who turned out to be a hardcore rightie, they lost. Miller isn't going to win in Alaska without some help from the lawyers, O'Donnell and Angle imploded, etc. However, the Tea Party did fuel victories in the House races all over the country.

No, Angle didnt "implode". She lost narrowly because Reid got his buddies in teh casino industry to engage in fraud and intimidation. Pretty good for someone who everyone said didnt have a prayer and Reid would bury her.
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

And when the GOP accomplished NOTHING in the next two years...which they won't. Will they agains run extreme candidates?

Well, they didn't "run extreme candidates" to begin with. Those "extreme" candidates ran as tea party candidates and beat out entrenched Republican opposition in the primaries. The voters, not the party, determine who the candidates are. Called primaries.
Republicans are pissed at the Tea Party as they cost them 3 Senate seats and are rolling their eyes at Michelle Bachman as she wants the #3 position of power on the Hill and is running for it.
True conservatives despise these social moral police Republicans. However, we are tired of the tax spend EVERYONE.
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

The GOP has a tight rope to walk. In races where the GOP ran a Tea Party loyalist who turned out to be a hardcore rightie, they lost. Miller isn't going to win in Alaska without some help from the lawyers, O'Donnell and Angle imploded, etc. However, the Tea Party did fuel victories in the House races all over the country.

So they need to find a way to skate between keeping the Tea Party, and not abandoning the Middle or they'll lose in 2012. If they lean too far right, they'll pretty much guarantee Obama a second term.

Well said. Most conservatives are tiring of the social moral police of the Republican party. Us old time Goldwater conservatives always stress to those idiots:
1. No one is going to force you to have an abortion.
2. No one is going to force you to marry someone of the same sex.
3. No one is going to force you to be a homosexual.
4. No one is going to take away your right to be a Christian or pray when you want to.

We still have a few whack jobs to run off such as the Bachman clown in Minnesotta but we are slowly but surely weeding the circus shows out of the fold.
 
I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

The GOP has a tight rope to walk. In races where the GOP ran a Tea Party loyalist who turned out to be a hardcore rightie, they lost. Miller isn't going to win in Alaska without some help from the lawyers, O'Donnell and Angle imploded, etc. However, the Tea Party did fuel victories in the House races all over the country.

No, Angle didnt "implode". She lost narrowly because Reid got his buddies in teh casino industry to engage in fraud and intimidation. Pretty good for someone who everyone said didnt have a prayer and Reid would bury her.

No, Reid used the scare tatic catch word "extreme" 47,918 times everywhere in his ads describing Angle. And it worked.
Attack ads always work because the voters are dumbasses everywhere be they Republican or Democrat.
Casino Workers belong to the Culinary Workers Union in Nevada, the most heavily regulated industry in America. If there was any fraud or intimidation in the casino industry it would be front and center with the Casino Board in Nevada.
And it isn't for a reason. Just a bunch of internet blogging hooey from a SORE LOSER.
Angle is a ham sandwich short of a picnic lunch just like Reid.
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.
:eusa_hand: Please, just stop. The Tea Party is teh awesome. They won because they will do away with social security, medicare, and guarantee tax breaks for the wealthy.

And if the GOP doesn't buckle down to their demands, the GOP will be toast.
 
Yes, the big news is the flip in many state legislative houses and governorships that point to a successful GOP redistricting effort that will have a much longer lasting political effect on local politics and, therefore on the actual influence government has RE individual liberty. This in combination with a GOP house that is making noises about cutting spending may very well have a cascading effect reducing liberal sources of political power and resources and their influence. Remember there will be no more 'stimulus' funds to bailout those states and their generous deals to state employee unions with taxpayer money.

The senate is not controlled by the GOP but then that might not be such a bad thing, politically speaking, at this point anyway. It certainly is not clear that a GOP controlled Congress would avoid the pitfalls that the Dems fell into. Conceptually speaking, if we had a sufficiently strong GOP Congressional majority the GOP might attempt an over reach analogous to that of the totally Dem controlled Executive/Congress, even with a veto pen wielding President Obama. That said remember the incoming Manchin taking Sen. Byrds seat will be up for relection in 2012 and he literally ran as a republican to get elected. If GOP leader Mitch McConnell has 46 he can always get 41, even if you subtract out the Maine Snow geese. But the GOP can gain political capital, take the sun downing of the Bush Tax cuts. In Jan look for the GOP to pass a measure that will prevent a tax increase in time of a weak recovery (House and Senate will pass this--no problem). Obama has the choice to agree to no tax increase for anyone or veto no tax for all in favor of a tax on some perceived to be job creators. Look for the house to pass a repeal measure on Obamacare. It then passes the house forcing a vote/filibuster in the Senate. Now all legislators are on record for the 2012 elections. Look for Rep Issa (R-CA) in the house oversight committee to start some inquiries into the DOJ/NBPP thing, the Clinton/WH/Sestak bribe thingy...

One columnist I read had it right. This last election was the public's attempt to issue a 'restraining order' against the liberal/progressive policies advanced in the last two years. Yes, the country is mostly center-right but the GOP will have to be careful in determining exactly how far to the right that might be. The key to success here will be in divining the politics of Independents. The GOP's goal simply must be a long term effort of advancing conservative principles when they can and preventing any slide to the left...at all. Compromises with the left must be avoided for this reason. Talk of compromise and bipartisanship should be viewed only in the context of not compromising conservative principles. Compromise with the left that moves policy to the right should be the goal and not the alternative. Public education RE the importance of conservative values is key here for the next 30 years.

About tea-partiers being blamed for the 'loss' of Senate seats: It doesn't matter that much if Miller loses to Princess Murkowski in AL since she is GOP anyway. Look, here's the deal: In a number of races with open primaries tea party candidates such as in AL and DE those voters in the GOP chose Miller over Murkowski and O'Donnell over Castle. It was the GOP establishment that chose not to fully support these candidates once they were chosen by the people (same thing with Scozzafava up in NY-23 last year). The GOP did finally support Rand Paul in Kentucky and he won. It is arguable whether O’Donnell would have won the general or not but it is disingenuous for the GOP establishment to suggest that it is all the tea party's fault when the GOP establishment decided on a lackluster campaign effort for these candidates after they were chosen. Would have been nice if Castle had actually endorsed his GOP compadre but then he isn't really a conservative, must have been sticking to his 'principles', I guess. Additionally, one could argue that the GOP should thank O’Donnell for her efforts in DE, even if only as a sacrificial lamb. If Castle had run in the general the Dems might not have focused so much treasure and effort on the race thereby freeing up funds to strengthen Dem candidates in other races where the GOP squeaked out a victory or two. JHey,just saying.

JM
 
The Tea Party cost the GOP the Senate.

30 seats in the House were lost as a natural midterm giveback. 30 seats were lost because of the state of the economy.

I agree, pretty close summation there.
However, Tea Party activists stress ACCOUNTABILITY and the GOP is on notice of that and are on a probationary period. If they do not change the spending course we are on with social security and Medicare Independents will be taking their place.

In theory.
 
These were great victories but keep in mind that the Socialists/Progressives still control most of our Government. This fight is hardly over. Until the Senate and White House are taken from the Socialists/Progressives,the fight isn't over.
 

New Topics

Forum List

Back
Top